Sufjan Stevens

I have been listening to Sufjan Stevens new record, "Come On Feel the Illinoise" this week and I have to say that this could be one of the best records of the year. This is an amazing listen. He must play like 153 instruments in this or something. Very different sound, very different instruments, quite a production overall. He even uses a chorus in some parts which is awesome. I'm really quite amazed at this record. I'm not smart enough to review this one. All I can say is WOW. 2 states down in his 50 states project. I look forward to hearing more.

5.0 on the 5.0 Dusty Scale

Are You A Dreamer?

I have to admit that I had great expectations for this album so my review of it might be a little tainted. High expectations from an artist you love are barely ever fulfilled. After the River Bends release my anticipation grew even more. After I heard him live in Brooklyn my expectations soared. I was able to get a prerelease of the album on ebay so i got to hear it a little early. After listening to it, i was pretty disappointed. I think there are a few really good songs on the album but nothing else stuck out to me. This is not the Denison Witmer of "Of Joy and Sorrow." It would be more appropriately titled, "Are You A Sleeper?" Because this album can be a snooze at times. If you need a CD to help you get to sleep at night, pick this one up. I'm hoping for something a little more enthusiastic from his next release.

Little Flowers *****
Everything But Sleep *
Ringing of the Bell Tower ***
Are You A Dreamer? ****
East From West **
California Brown and Blue ***
Castle and Cathedral **
Worry All The Time ****
Grandma Mary *
Finding Your Feet Again **

2.7 on the 5.0 Dustin Scale

Mid-20's Crisis

http://www.relevantmagazine.com/article.php?sid=6797

Make sure you check out my new article on Relevant.

Prayer Thought From Da Man

Prayer is not a machine. It is not magic. It is not advice offered to God. It would be even worse to think of those who get what they pray for as a sort of court favorites, people who have influence with the throne. The refused prayer of Christ in Gethsemane is answer enough to that. And I dare not leave out the hard saying which I once heard from an experienced Christian: “I have seen many striking answers to prayer and more than one that I thought miraculous. But they usually come at the beginning: before conversion, or soon after it. As the Christian life proceeds, they tend to be rarer. The refusals, too, are not only more frequent; they become more unmistakable, more emphatic.”

Does God then forsake just those who serve Him best? Well, He who served Him best of all said, near His tortured death, “Why hast thou forsaken me?” When God becomes man, that Man, of all others, is least comforted by God, at His greatest need. There is a mystery here which even if I had the power, I might not have the courage to explore. Meanwhile, little people like you and me, if our prayers are sometimes granted, beyond all hope and probability, had better not draw hasty conclusions to our own advantage. If we were stronger, we might be less tenderly treated. If we were braver, we might be sent, with far less help, to defend far more desperate posts in the great battle.”

The Efficacy of Prayer – CS Lewis (from essay book titled The World’s Last Night and Other Essays.)

The Divine Comedy

I just polished off the third book of Dante's Divine Comedy yesterday on the airplane. I read the books for two reasons. because they prefaced all of Mclaren's chapters in "The Last Word" and because they have always intrigued me. I was fascinated by the Inferno. That is definitely the best one. There is something about these books that just feel inspired by God. Obviously these descriptions are probably not that accurate of what heaven and hell is really like but they are definitely inspired and it was apparent through the whole series. Dante like many people, loved God, but was vastly disappointed by the actions of the church and made that apparent by the people he visited in hell. I'm sure the Pope would have been surprised to have found himself in hell when he read through these which i'm sure was one of the major reasons he got booted from Florence. If you haven't read these books, i would encourage you to. I'm not sure what the best translation is but if you don't like the King James don't read Henry Wadsworth Longfellow's translation. That was brutal. I switched to Mark Musa after the Inferno.

"By means of grace that wells up from a spring so deep that no man’s eye has ever plumbed the bottom of its source." Canto XX 118-120

Midwest Church Trades Pastor For First Round Pick

Pastor Jim Barnard wasn’t expecting this news at the midweek prayer breakfast. After praying for Margaret’s cat BooBoo, executive pastor Chip Raines made an announcement. Jim Barnard was being traded to Cleveland. He would be moving his family to fill his new role as the Life Architectural Developing Mechanic (senior pastor) at Cedar Hollow Life Pointe Community Church. Pastor Barnard was traded for a first round Seminary Graduate, 20,000 dollars for new communion ware and two junior high leaders to be named later.

When asked how Jim felt about going to CHLPCC he said, “This is bullcrap, I had big numbers this fall. You know how many people came to hear me! I wasn’t expecting to be traded this early in my career. I really feel like I have developed a lot in the last year and was an asset to this church. What did they get for me anyway?”

When he found out he was being traded for a first round pick and two junior high leaders he was outraged. “I know we need Junior High leaders but to trade me for a rookie is unacceptable. They’ll regret that when things get going next fall. Big mistake and I’ll prove them wrong.”

Denison Witmer @ Northsix, Brooklyn

Last night my friend Matt and I saw Denison Witmer play at Northsix. When we got there we noticed a sign that said, "Copeland will not be playing tonight." We were kind of bummed because we wanted to see them too so i checked online today to see what happened and it said this:

"Hey guys, crappy update for tonight. We're unfortunately going to have to pull out of tonight's show in Brooklyn. There was an incident after loading into the venue in which a member of our crew was attacked by someone inside the club. In consideration for our safety, we decided that we should not play tonight. We apologize to anyone who already bought tickets in anticipation of our appearance. We'll be back to Brooklyn soon. Sorry, guys."

Wow, how crazy!!!

Anyway, i was a little disappointed because Denison only got to play 7 songs. 7 lousy songs! I'm really depressed that I missed him with The River Bends when they were here. But 5 of the songs was off of his unreleased album "Are You A Dreamer" that comes out in July. There was one song about Francis of Assisi that was incredible and I really liked the title track as well. The only other two songs he played was Stations which makes sense because it's on every album and one song off of Safe Away that I really don't think is one of his best. I'm confused and hurt Denison. Please explain it to me.

Battle of Who Could Wear the Biggest Dumbest Glasses

I'm sorry ladies, but this new trend you have of wearing these entirely too big, square framed glasses is ridiculous. I saw a girl the other day who was this tiny petite blonde girl who had sunglasses on that covered up half of her face. I see these glasses all over and I can't figure out why. They make girls look ridiculous.

My question is and has been for some time. Why do girls have a tendency to try to look like Paris Hilton? Do women realize who they are modeling??? Why would you want to be anything like that??? I have so many questions. But the point it, knock the elephant glasses off and stop wearing stupid stuff to be trendy. Yes, the same can be said for guys and their Vans, large Magnum P.I. glasses and riding around on a California Cruiser. Trend Following can be really pathetic.

I haven't ranted for a while. This kind of feels good! It's so easy!

Prairie Spring

Evening and the flat land,
Rich and somber and always silent;
The miles of fresh-plowed soil,
Heavy and black, full of strength and harshness;
The growing wheat, the growing weeds,
The toiling horses, the tired men;
The long empty roads,
Sullen fires of sunset, fading,
The eternal, unresponsive sky.
Against all this, Youth,
Flaming like the wild roses,
Singing like the larks over the plowed fields,
Flashing like a star out of the twilight;
Youth with its unsupportable sweetness,
Its fierce necessity,
Its sharp desire,
Singing and singing,
Out of the lips of silence,
Out of the earthy dusk.

Willa Cather

I love this poem because it reminds me of the small farming community i grew up in.

Iron & Wine - Webster Hall

I have several thoughts about last night's show at Webster Hall.

First, let me address Webster Hall as a music venue.
1. It is hotter than hell.
2. The sound is not good for a music venue.
3. A beer is 7 dollars, yes, that's right, one bottle of beer.
4. On Friday nights, the show has to end by 10pm because there is an amateur strip contest.
5. It seems like half of the crowd at Webster Hall either hadn't been to a concert before or had no idea who Iron & Wine was. There were people talking and laughing and answering cell phones. I read someone talk about the crowd at Webster Hall but did not believe it until last night. What makes this crowd so much worse than Bowery Ballroom or Northsix???
6. Way overcrowded. I've been to some full shows before but they sell this thing way beyond it's limit.

Overall Rating of Webster Hall - Worst Music Venue in New York City, I will never attend a show there again.

I don't have time now to talk about the Iron & Wine performance but i will come back later. They were MUCH better than the venue!

More Apartment Fun

Today I came home and found that my bathroom ceiling had caved in again for the fourth time in 10 months. What are the chances of that. Quite ugly in my bathroom right now. The guy who runs this place is what you call a SLUMLORD. He doesn't fix anything, he just tries to patch it up to save money. I can't wait to get out of this place.

Orders from the Captain

5 Songs You Should Download Today:

1. Like Silver - Rocky Votolato

2. Cherry Lane - Ryan Adams

3. Eels - Railroad Man

4. The Dears - Lost In The Plot

5. Ben Folds - Late

Come on, go download and listen to them. Seriously, they're good. This is getting frustrating. why won't you just go? What's you're problem? Are you stupid? You just keep standing there like a big dummy. Let's move. Fine, forget it, you wouldn't like the songs anyway.


2 Beers You Should Try:

1. Young's Oatmeal Stout

2. Belhaven Scottish Ale


2 TV Shows You Should Check Out:

1. Hell's Kitchen (very dramatic and funny - Fox is really running out of ideas)

2. Family Guy (I've really gotten hooked lately)


1 Bar Video Game You Must Place:

1. Buck Hunter

I'm Addicted to Coke

No, not that coke. I'm talking about the sugary sweet brown substance that comes in plastic red bottles. Last night I was reminded of my out of control addiction as I stood pouring out a two-liter bottle that was more than half full into my sink. I could smell the soda and hear the fizz as my favorite beverage ran out to it's demise. It was almost as if it was screaming at me, "Why, Dustin Why?" I felt as if I were betraying a friend that has been there for me my entire life. It was there for me during long nights in college and right back in the morning before class. I almost cried as the last few drops of soda hit the metal and ran down the drain. I'm sorry Coke but I can't have you anymore. You have too many calories and your cousin Diet Coke sucks too bad to drink. I'll miss you.

A Cool Stream of Water

A few weeks ago while I was in L.A. i had the priveledge of staying at a hotel in Little Tokyo which had Bidet's in your room. I was a little scared at first to use it but I mustered up the courage and gave it a shot. What I experienced was quite what you would think, a cool stream of water hitting you in the butt. It was a little alarming and uncomfortable at first but oh the refreshment that it brought. I used it several other times during the week and after our time there I can't imagine why everyone in the country would not want one of these. They are brilliant! Not to be too graphic but there are times when wiping just isn't enough, you almost need a second shower. Well this takes care of the problem everytime and you leave feeling a little strange but very clean. If you have a chance give it a try, you will love it.

Man frequents tavern to break religious spirit.

NEWPORT NEWS — Doug Terrel felt he was being influenced by a religious spirit, making him judgmental and closed-minded, so he began visiting a local bar to celebrate his freedom in Christ.

"A religious spirit won't go near a bar, so I'm safe in there," he says downing a second Guinness stout at the Pit Stop.

Church members say Terrel has stopped showing up for weekday prayer meetings since he started battling his "demon of legalism." What began as a spiritual housecleaning has become a full-fledged hobby.

At the Pit Stop, Terrel appears untroubled.
"I used to live by 'don't taste, don't touch.' Now it's pass the beer nuts and who's up for a game of darts?" he says. "That religious spirit takes it on the chin every time I'm here." •

I love www.larknews.com. Hilarious.

H.E. Double Hockey Sticks Part 2

Key Question:
“Should the purpose of Christianity be reduced to this: to increase the population of heaven and the decrease of crowdedness of hell?” Mclaren 8

I thought this question was interesting because this was not the focus of Jesus. At the Mosaic Origins conference in L.A. this week the one thing the McManus’ brought up over and over again was that following Jesus isn’t about becoming a “Christian”, it’s about becoming fully human how God intended. The point of Christianity is not to become a Christian and then get to go to heaven someday. It’s about being saved now and making this world a better place.

God as Judge?
“In early biblical times, there was no such thing as a complex court system or jury or constitution or annotated legal code or judicial precedent or nation-state. The judge was – one hoped – a wise, honest, and brave person who helped people resolve disputes and seek justice.” Mclaren 40

Now there is a new understanding of God being the ultimate judge isn’t it? What a fresh and beautiful picture of God. In our day it is easy to have a picture of God as a judge that sentences people and punishes rather than redeems and helps.

Hell in the Old Testament?
“It’s never mentioned once in the whole Hebrew Bible. Even the latest books of the O.T., thought to have been written about 450 B.C. have no reference to hell. Instead the idea appears suddenly to us in the Gospels on the lips of Jesus. Jesus is the first in all biblical literature to talk about hell, and he talks the most about it."

“The Hebrew word SHEOL was translated as hell in the King James Version. But that was a mistake. SHEOL simply meant the place of the dead, the grave. There was no idea of an immortal soul involved and certainly no idea of different destinations for the good and the evil.”

The KJV has screwed up once again. I can’t believe people use this translation after all the errors found in it. Especially the stubborn ones that believe it is the original translation or something. Funny stuff.

So why did Jesus talk about hell?
It is interesting to note that the Pharisees had borrowed the idea of hell from the Greeks and other religions of the day. There was a lot of mixing going on with Judaism during this era. The Pharisees thought hell would be a good way to get sinners to stop sinning because they believed that only then would a Messiah come and redeem Jerusalem and they were getting tired of waiting.

“First they would threaten sinners with hell. Second, they would extend the reward of resurrection from the heroic martyrs of all good people-good meaning those who fulfilled the Pharisees’ ideal of good. Finally, they would use the language of hell to accomplish what they felt they needed to accomplish-to frighten sinners enough to repent and change their way for the good of the nation.” Mclaren 62

After Jesus heard them talk about hell threateningly, he did what he usually did. He turned it right back around on the religious leaders. He didn’t threaten the sinners with hell, he threatened the religious leaders with hell! While reading the Gospels take notice of the context that Jesus spoke of hell in. You will be surprised.

“The Pharisees used hell to threaten sinners and other undesirable and mark them as the excluded out-group, hated by God. Their rhetorical use of hell made clear that God’s righteousness was severe and merciless toward the undeserving. Jesus turned their rhetoric upside down and inside out and used hell to threaten those who excluded sinners and other undesirables, showing that God’s righteousness was compassionate and merciful, that God’s kingdom welcomed the undeserving, that for God, there was no out-group.” Mclaren 74

Does this sound like anyone you know???

“The Pharisees threatened marginal people with hell unless they submitted to their religious dominance. Jesus threatened the religious establishment with hell unless they showed compassion for the marginal people. Hell has been used and abused, back and forth, ever since.” Mclaren 136

True Hell Starts on Earth:
“What could be more serious than standing in front of your Creator-the Creator of the universe and finding out that you had wasted your life, squandered your inheritance, caused others pain and sorrow, worked against the good places of God? What could be more serious than that? To have to face the real, eternal, unavoidable, absolute, naked truth about yourself, what you’ve done, what you’ve become?” Mclaren 79

What is sad is how many “saved” Christians are going to be facing God and having Him look them in the face and say, “you’ve wasted your life.” You thought because you were forgiven that you had crossed the finish line, but that was only the beginning of what I wanted you to do. Not to wait until some “rapture” and hold on tight, but to be a blessing in the world and share the good news.”

I can’t think of any hell that is worse than hearing those words from God either. God I pray that we will not waste our lives here on earth but be on mission with you.

All this talk of fire and brimstone sounds like good metaphors to describe what that must feel like.

Three responses to hell:
Accept it and preach it as the terrible but unavoidable truth
Understand it as temporary and leading to annihilation.
Understand it as purgative and effective at bringing all to repentance and ultimate salvation.
Mclaren 102,103

I’m still not sure where I would fit in on what I think of hell. This is a toughie.

What is the gospel?
Our contemporary modern Western conservative Protestant gospel would say this:

Behavior: Not accepting Jesus Christ as personal savior, not being saved or born again, not asking Jesus into your heart so your sins can be forgiven, etc.

Consequence: Being sent to hell

Point: Accept Jesus as your personal savior.

Shocking Truth: Not one passage from the Gospels says anything remotely like this! There is more to following Jesus than just praying a prayer. It is a lifetime mission!

What was the point Jesus was trying to make about hell in the Gospels?
-It definitely wasn’t to “hold the right beliefs” or “affirm the right doctrines” or anything like that. Instead Jesus was clearly interested in action, in what we do, in how we treat others, especially, and in whether we trust him enough to follow his teaching even if it means difficulty and persecution. It was clear that Jesus wasn’t just saying that anything goes, everything’s OK. He was telling people that they would be held accountable, that how they live no would count forever.

Judgment Vs. Condemnation:

Mclaren says there is a difference between judgment and condemnation. Even though we are saved we will still be judged by what we have done on earth and the person we have become. That was the tension in the gospels.

“Judgment is real. Accountability to God is real. A good, just reconciling, loving, living God is in everybody’s future. The danger of wasting your life and ruining other people’s lives is real. Whatever road you take, you’ll end up facing God, and that means you’ll face the truth about your life-what you’ve done, who you have become, who you truly are. That’s good news-unless you’re a bad dude, you know, unjust, hateful, unmerciful, ungenerous, selfish, lustful, greedy, hard-hearted toward God and your neighbor. You know, if God judges, forgives, and eliminates all the bad stuff, there might not be much left of you-maybe not enough to enjoy heaven, maybe not enough to feel too much in hell either.” Mclaren 137

“Salvation by grace, judgment by works.” Interesting concept here.

Traditional, modern western way of telling the gospel:
1. If you were to die tonight, do you know for certain that you’d go to be with God in heaven?
2. If Jesus returned today, would you be ready to meet God?

New understanding of the gospel:
1. If you were to live for another fifty years, what kind of person would you like to become-and how will you become that kind of person?
2. If Jesus doesn’t return for ten thousand or ten million years, what kind of world do we want to create?
Mclaren 171

This is incredibly refreshing and really shows the harms that the whole “Left Behind” theology has done to God’s Church. What do they care what happens to the world, to people, to the environment. All the want to know if where a human soul will go but Jesus’ gospel is much bigger than that.

If you have several questions about hell I would recommend reading "The Last Word and the Word After That." It has been very thought provoking and as much as people don't want to think about hell, subconsciously it has much to do with your view of the gospel and how you share it with others. I never realized how important this was. I can't wait to hear people's comments on this one!!!

We Had Some Good Times Together

Today I broke up with my credit card. I say that because I had to call and cancel one of my cards because I don't use it anymore. The first person transferred me to an account specialist (the guy i would be breaking up with).

He sounded pretty bummed out when I told him i would be cancelling. I felt bad upsetting him like this. He started by asking me, "is there a particular reason you are cancelling today?" I responded, "I just don't need it anymore."

He tried to remind me of the great benefits. "But don't you want all those airline miles?" "Sir, i get like 4 miles everytime I spend a thousand dollars, where is that going to fly me?" "You know there are other things you can get with those like cars and hotels." "No sir, please cancel my account."

He tried everything to get me to continue dating the credit card. He reasoned with me monetarily. "But sir you already paid the service fee for the year, you might as well hang on to it for the year right?" "Please Cancel My Account."

He tried to give me free offers. "How about if I give you 30 dollars and refund your yearly charge?" "No thanks, please cancel my account."

Finally as Josh Peigh says, you just have to tell the guy, "i'm sorry man, it's not you it's me. I can't manage a credit card well."

And then he realized that there is nothing he could do to keep the credit card and I together and he just said, "fine your account is cancelled, bye."

It must have been tough on him because he just wanted to get off the phone. I guess he couldn't hold back his emotions anymore.

I however started laughing after the third question when he sounded like he was taking it personally and couldn't answer the fifth question because i was laughing so hard.

Goodbye American Airlines Frequent Flyer Citibank Gold Mastercard. You helped me in tough times and I appreciate it. We bought useless and frivelous things together like a Starbucks drink anytime I wanted it, underwear when mine started getting holes in them and gifts for other people i never thought to budget for. I just wish you wouldn't have taken so much money from me in the form of interest.

H. E. Double Hockey Sticks

We had a great discussion on hell last night at Theology Pub.

Some of the questions that were raised.....
--Why does God have people who go to hell suffer for eternity?
--Why can't they just suffer for a little while and then be annihilated?
--Isn't that kind of sick to make someone suffer for eternity?
--How does that correlate with the characteristics of Jesus? Meaning his love, compassion,
grace, etc?
--What is hell actually like?
--What about those who have never heard? Can't Jesus' blood cover them even if they don't
know that Jesus is the one doing the saving? (I think so)

Some people use the argument that God has to send people to hell because it's justice, he doesn't have a choice. But that is saying that God can't make his own decisions. He's bound by some sort of system that is out of his control.

Keep in mind that we were asking these questions not just to dump the answers on people but because we really want to know. Don't assume that you know what my answers would be on these subjects because quite honestly I don't have a lot of them. I think the canned answers for the questions on hell are garbage. There has to be some real answers that don't try to bail God out all the time but really explain the necessity of hell. Again, don't answer with justice because God can do whatever He wants.

All of this has sparked from reading part of Mclaren's latest book "The Last Word and the Word After That." Here are some quotes you might enjoy:

"Deep in my heart, I acknowledged that I felt stuck with the traditional view of hell. It bothered me to use exclusive and Jesus in the same sentence. Everything about Jesus' life and message seemed to be about inclusion, not exclusion. I couldn't figure out how anything with "eternal conscious torment" in it could be called "Good News."

Quote from Mere Christianity:
"There are people in other religions who are being led by God's secret influence to concentrate on those parts of their religion which are in agreement with Chrsitianity and who thus belong to Christ without knowing it."

Chronicles of Narnia ends on a similar note with Aslan telling (can't remember his name.) that because of his ignorance he will still be saved. Aslan said that everything he did for his gods Aslan would count that he did it for him and everything he did wrong he would count that he did it towards his gods. Interesting.

I love C.S. Lewis and I think I agree with him and his more open view of salvation but I'm still shocked more people didn't see him as a heretic. There is a fine line between heretic and genius and Lewis was a Mere Genius.

Any thoughts on hell out there? I'm curious to learn more of the history of hell and how the idea has transformed over the years from what Jesus said clear up to this devil and pitchfork idea. I think that will help clear it up. Hopefully Mclaren will go through some of that as the book goes on.

One music note: Bloc Party is another terrible rip off hipster band.

Ping-Pong, Prostitutes, and (can't think of another P-Word)

Where am I? - Sitting in Alt.Coffee (a little coffeeshop in the East Village) right behind a guy with a shirt that says, "Losing is Nature's way of Saying You Suck "No Fear". Hahahaha. I was wondering where all the no fear shirts went. This guys got them.

Worst CD I've heard this week? - The Bravery - The Bravery. This is the most annoying garbage you'll hear for sometime. This dance rock thing has gotten out of control. I've said this before but if I hear one more band (The Killers especially) trying to be a modern version of Duran Duran meets Morrissey I'm going to give up on music. Have you seen The Killers perform? Why doesn't he stop trying to be Morrissey and start trying to create an identity for himself?

What I did last week? - went to Naperville and got some time to hang with Brad and Nick. I ate Cold Stone twice, Mongolian BBQ (awesome), Potbelly, and Smoky Bones. Great food. Also took a romantic walk by the riverwalk one time with Brad and Keith. As Keith says, "just dudes being dudes." In the meantime there was this middle aged couple eating faces by the water for a good 45 minutes. that's got to be an affair right? What husband and wife at that age is devouring each other by the water? That would be respectable if they were married for like 20 years though. To still have that passion would be impressive.

Weirdest NYC thing on Sunday? - a van pulls up in front of Brian and an Explorer pulls up right behind it and parks. A woman who has no underwear on and hardly a skirt gets out of the explorer, gets into the van with blacked out windows and the van starts a rockin. The strange thing about it??? It was 8am! Who's pickin up prostitutes at 8AM on a Sunday Morning?

Best Seinfeld Episode on this week? - Can Yogurt Cause Weight Gain? "This yogurt is *$&#(in great!" I love that one.

PS 89 Talent Show 2005

My friend Gregg informed me this morning that there was an article in the Downtown Express about the Talent Show from a few weeks ago that I MC'd so i went to the site and was surprised to find this on the front.

Here's the article. http://www.downtownexpress.com/de_101/ps89students.html

I'm not sure but I don't think "Catskills Comic" is a good thing. Oh well. It was a fun time and went much better than last year since I knew what to expect. This girl right here had the coolest hair in the world. She was Pippy Longstocking. It would have looked better in color so you could get the full effect. She actually had hangars attached inside her hair. Pretty crazy.

Death and Granola Bars

Last night I watched Larry King Live because they were talking about what happens when a person dies. The panel was John Macarthur (Christian), a Catholic Priest, a Spiritualist, a Muslim, a Jewish Rabbi and an Atheist. I suggest checking out the transcript, it's very interesting. The most irritating person on the program had to be the spiritualist woman. She was very cultish and scary. A lot of "God is love and when we die we get sucked up by the essense of love and we become one with everything" kind of talk. Hers was definitely the opinion with the least amount of authority. At least the Muslim, Christian and Jew have a place where they put their authority. With the spiritualist it is just about what you feel and experience.
http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0504/14/lkl.01.html

This morning we met at 7:45 to hand out Granola Bars to people on their way to work with a postcard about Forefront. It was a better experience than I usually have. I feel like this is an effective way to meet people and establish a good community presence but generally don't enjoy participating that much. The people were all very friendly today. The city woke up on the right side of the bed this morning. Had a few people stop and thank us and one person emailed in and thanked us and said he might come to church on the 24th. It's amazing the people you can meet and the invite to church just by handing out something as simple as a granola bar. We do it a lot in the city, it makes me wonder why churches in smaller cities and towns don't make that kind of effort. You would never see anyone from a church in Lincoln Illinois doing that and it makes me wonder why? I bet it would be huge there. But I guess most of us have gotten comfortable by just hoping people show up to a building on Sunday because they know it's there right? I'm not trying to be holier than thou, I just realize now that I didn't make much of an effort when I lived in the Bible Belt because it was almost like, "they know where church is, they can come if they want, it's up to them." I didn't feel like we really sought people out to invite. Am I way off here?

Austin Powers

Believe it or not I had never seen Austin Powers before last night. I saw the third one on TV a few months ago and loved it so last night Kelli and I watched it at her place. There were a few parts within the movie that I was literally crying unable to watch the screen I was laughing so hard. What an incredible movie! I wish I would have watched these movies sooner. I have no idea why I didn't see them. One of my favorite parts is when he is trying to turn around the little golf cart thing in the narrow hallway. If you've seen the movie you know what I'm talking about. Or when he is playing Blackjack and stays on a 5. Hilarious scene. I am now a huge fan of Austin Powers. I love comedies but it has been a long time since a comedy has made me laugh that hard. It was painful.

Sandler Classics

I was watching Happy Gilmore tonight and it reminded me how much I love Adam Sandler movies. They are kind of like a genre of their own. Here are my top five favorites.

1. Billy Madison
2. Wedding Singer
3. Happy Gilmore
4. Big Daddy
5. The Waterboy

My least favorite Sandler movie award goes to..............................................Punch Drunk Love. I still don't understand the movie and honestly i'm not sure if i want to.

When I was in college my roomate and i would put on Billy Madison every night as we went to bed. I think the sentimental value has caused me to place it number one. What is your favorite?

My First Review On Relevant

http://www.relevantmagazine.com/article.php?sid=6118

Hey guys, check it out. I wrote a review of The Decemberists new album Picaresque and made it on the site. Not sure if that's an accomplishment or not but it's fun nonetheless.

Illinois' Demise

Illinois' season didn't end quite as i expected. Here are the things I think went wrong:

1. They needed to double team May from the beginning. He was unstoppable. 10 for 11 field goals. You can't win with their star beating you.

2. They did not penetrate at all when North Carolina switched to the zone defense. They didn't pass to the middle to break down the zone. The just passed it around on the outside and someone threw up a three.

3. They shot a NCAA record of 40 three pointers and did not shoot a high percentage.

4. Augustine fouled out with 9 minutes left. That was the cause of #3.

5. Bruce Weber got outcoached. He didn't change anything. Defense stayed the same (no double team or full court pressure) Offense did not change their strategy, they just kept chucking up threes. He got smoked by Roy Williams in the coaching department.

Overall, it was a pretty disappointing game. To get that far and then play awful was horrible. I can't believe they didn't lose by more than 5 playing that poorly. I guess that just shows how good they really are. They can have a terrible game and still almost pull it off.

Learn to walk tourist

Last night I was walking home from Union Square when these two girls who were walking beside me decided to start veering to the left instead of walking in a straight line which usually is not good in a crowd of people. Incidentily she walked into me, which happens, and i just kept walking and got ahead of them and then I hear her say, "excuse you" in a real snotty voice. I think most people say something like that thinking no one will call them on it so I decided to shake things up a little. I turned around and looked at her right in the face and said, "excuse me, what did you just say?" and just waited. At this point you could see the fear in her face that someone actually held her accountable for what she said and i continued, "because what I thought just happened is that you walked directly into me, would that be right?" They still didn't say anything but you could tell they were just trying to get out of there. I've never seen a face as red as hers. It was funny. I know, some people will probably comment something like, "well that wasn't very nice Dustin, you should be more compassionate." And for all those people I guess i would just say, "shut up, it was funny" so go ahead and save your comments.

Another thing I was thinking is that The Bravery and The Killers could not sound more alike. Who is copying who here? I'm confused.

Started reading The Pilgrims Progress last night for fun. I tried before once and thought it was difficult to read but tried again giving some effort into appreciating it for what it is and the time in which it was written and it is actually a very cool book. I'm enjoying it a lot and getting some stuff out of it.

The only other thing on my mind is the Illinois/UNC game tonight. Wow, could there be a better match up? Clearly the two best teams in the country. They match up so well with each other. Should be an incredible game although i would love to see Illinois dominate UNC just to shut Dick Vitale up about the ACC being the best conference in the history of the universe. The Big Ten had 2 teams in the final four. ACC? 1. The Big Ten had 3 teams in the Elite Eight. ACC? 1. Shut up Dicky V. Man, i'm angry today!

The Album Leaf Live

Last night my friend Jeff and I headed over to Brooklyn to catch the Album Leaf play. North Six is a great venue to see a show and surprisingly is closer to me than Bowery Ballroom. I think i'll see more shows there. Anyway, the opening band was supposed to start at 9pm but did not start until late, set up was very slow and after all was said and done the Album Leaf didn't go on until 12:15am. So I was kind of tired of standing around at this point.

The Album Leaf setting up was entertainment as well. They had more electronic equipment than I have ever seen before. They started out playing the first four songs right off of In A Safe Place, which i loved. They also had a huge backdrop with an image show that corresponded directly to the music which was cool as well. I really enjoy their music and the complexity of the sounds they use but near the end I have to admit that it got a bit monotonous. I was tired of standing and tired of loops and apparently so were many other people because only a few stuck around for the encore. Overall however I enjoyed the music and would give the show a B-. Nothing spectacular but entertaining and worth my 10 dollars.

Kweller/Walkmen

Like i said earlier, i went to see Ben Kweller and The Walkmen at Irving Plaza tonight. Ben Kweller was great. There were some haters in the crowd but i guess that is with anyone that is playing. I've seen him a few times before so it wasn't anything new but one thing that was cool was that he brought Evan Dando formerly from The Lemonheads out and they did a Creedance Clearwater Revival song. That was really cool because their voices are completely the opposite. It worked out well. By the way if you haven't heard Ben Kweller, just do yourself a favor right now, seriously, stop reading and go buy his CD Sha Sha or On My Way. I'm not kidding read the rest when you get back. Come on, stop it. Go, Now!

Ok, you're back. Well, and then the Walkmen came out and i have to say it was probably the worst sounding crap i've ever heard. It was horrible. I have no idea how they got popular. His voice is awful. There were quite a few people leave after Ben Kweller played and I wish we would have joined them, however we stayed for three songs which was more than enough for all of us.

After the show I was leaving and my friend Brad yelled out from across the street, "hey dustin, by the way, good luck beating that rape charge." Needless to say there were some funny looks from the people around me. Good one Brad but you will pay dearly. Hahahahaha (mad scientist laughter)

Rain Rain Go the Freak Away

It has been raining non stop in the city since I woke up this morning. I'm not talking little sissy rain either, it's crazy outside. I hate walking out in the rain. Sure i've got an umbrella but when the wind is blowing, the umbrella can only help so much. We checked out a spot for worship today at Baruch College. The space is beautiful and it would be exciting to meet there. We're supposed to get the official price tonight so that will pretty much determine it.

In other news, I still cannot believe Illinois won. That was the single greatest comeback I have ever seen. How can you be down by 15 with 4 minutes left and win? How can you be down by 7 with 58 seconds left a win? I have no idea but it blew my mind. It was the first time in my life i was alone in my apartment and screamed like a little girl. No offense to girls, but when they're little they scream really high pitched and it hurts my ears. Arizona really had to try to lose that game. They should all quit basketball forever and never play as long as they live.

Going to see Ben Kweller tonigt at Irving Plaza. He's opening for The Walkmen which i'm not too excited about but its a special show and tix were only 5 dollars so we thought what the heck. I'm excited about seeing him but its still really raining hard outside. My intersection is completely flooded, it's like a swimming pool so its hard to walk around tonight.

Run In With Julia

Today we were having our staff meeting at Starbucks on 17th and 1st Ave. Brian noticed someone at the register directly by us and said, "I think that's Julia Stiles." I turned around and we could not see her face until she turned around to leave and sure enough, there was Julia Stiles. It was kind of exciting to see her right next to me but to be honest I'm not sure why. I'm not like a big fan or anything, i didn't really like her movies all that much but something about seeing her in a movie makes it a little exciting. I thought I was beyond that whole star thing but i guess not. Seemed like a pretty normal person, no one was bugging her or anything so that's cool. We were all daring each other to try and get her number and I said boldly, "NO, I LOVE MY FIANCE KELLI AND WOULD NEVER DO SUCH A THING." By the time I got a pen and paper she was walking out the door.

ok